AnimeAPI MCP server

Anime image generation for AI agents at $0.003 per image, one of the cheapest anime image APIs. One remote MCP server, no install: https://animeapi.ai/mcp. Pay as you go from a prepaid balance (from $5, never expires, no subscription). New accounts get 3 free images, no card.

Server URL: https://animeapi.ai/mcp (streamable HTTP, stateless)
Sign-in: OAuth (your agent opens a browser page, you click Allow), or a static header Authorization: Bearer ank_your_key
Registry name: ai.animeapi/mcp in the official MCP registry
Docs: https://animeapi.ai/docs/mcp

Prices

What	Price
`anime` image (default; best for characters)	$0.003
`ultra` image (follows long sentences, renders legible text)	$0.01
`ultra-max` image (highest detail)	$0.02
Video, 480p	$0.016 per second
Video, 768p	$0.04 per second

Any orientation costs the same. Failed generations are refunded.

Tools

Tool	What it does	Cost
`generate_anime_image`	One anime-style image from a text prompt. Returns the image URL, the prompt the model read, the cost and the remaining balance. About 4 seconds on `anime`.	$0.003 / $0.01 / $0.02 per image
`generate_anime_video`	One anime clip (MP4, 5 to 15 seconds, with sound) from a text prompt, optionally starting or ending on an image.	$0.016/s (480p), $0.04/s (768p)
`get_anime_video`	Checks a video that is still rendering.	Free

generate_anime_image arguments: prompt (required, up to 1,000 characters, plain English), model (anime | ultra | ultra-max, default anime), orientation (portrait | square | landscape, default portrait) and enhance (default true: rewrites plain English into tags for the anime model).

Install

Get a key at https://animeapi.ai/dashboard/api-keys (keys start with ank_), or skip the key and sign in with OAuth where the client supports it.

Claude Code

claude mcp add --transport http animeapi https://animeapi.ai/mcp

Then run /mcp, choose animeapi and sign in. With a key instead:

claude mcp add --transport http animeapi https://animeapi.ai/mcp \
  --header "Authorization: Bearer ank_your_key"

Claude Desktop and claude.ai

Settings → Connectors → Add custom connector → URL https://animeapi.ai/mcp → sign in when asked.

Cursor

~/.cursor/mcp.json (or .cursor/mcp.json in a project):

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "animeapi": { "url": "https://animeapi.ai/mcp" }
  }
}

Cursor signs you in on first use. With a key instead:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "animeapi": {
      "url": "https://animeapi.ai/mcp",
      "headers": { "Authorization": "Bearer ank_your_key" }
    }
  }
}

VS Code (GitHub Copilot)

code --add-mcp '{"name":"animeapi","type":"http","url":"https://animeapi.ai/mcp"}'

or .vscode/mcp.json:

{
  "servers": {
    "animeapi": { "type": "http", "url": "https://animeapi.ai/mcp" }
  }
}

VS Code signs you in on first use. With a key instead:

{
  "inputs": [
    { "id": "animeapi-key", "type": "promptString", "description": "AnimeAPI key (ank_...)", "password": true }
  ],
  "servers": {
    "animeapi": {
      "type": "http",
      "url": "https://animeapi.ai/mcp",
      "headers": { "Authorization": "Bearer ${input:animeapi-key}" }
    }
  }
}

Windsurf

Open the MCP servers panel in Cascade's settings and add a server, or edit the MCP config file directly:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "animeapi": {
      "url": "https://animeapi.ai/mcp",
      "transport": "http",
      "headers": { "Authorization": "Bearer ank_your_key" }
    }
  }
}

Leave out headers to sign in with OAuth instead. Older Windsurf builds keep this file at ~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json and name the address serverUrl instead of url.

Cline

MCP Servers → Remote Servers → name animeapi, URL https://animeapi.ai/mcp, transport Streamable HTTP. Or in cline_mcp_settings.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "animeapi": {
      "type": "streamableHttp",
      "url": "https://animeapi.ai/mcp",
      "headers": { "Authorization": "Bearer ank_your_key" }
    }
  }
}

OpenAI Codex

~/.codex/config.toml:

[mcp_servers.animeapi]
url = "https://animeapi.ai/mcp"
bearer_token_env_var = "ANIMEAPI_KEY"

Export ANIMEAPI_KEY=ank_your_key in the shell you start Codex from. Or sign in with OAuth: codex mcp add animeapi --url https://animeapi.ai/mcp then codex mcp login animeapi.

ChatGPT (developer mode)

Turn on Developer mode in ChatGPT's settings (paid plans; the exact menu has moved between releases), then create a new app (custom connector) with:

MCP server URL: https://animeapi.ai/mcp
Authentication: OAuth

ChatGPT registers itself, sends you to the AnimeAPI consent page and receives a key for your account. Enable the app in a chat from the tools menu.

Anything else

Any client that speaks streamable HTTP works: give it the URL, and either let it run OAuth (the server supports discovery, dynamic client registration and PKCE) or set the Authorization: Bearer ank_your_key header. Clients that only speak stdio can bridge with npx mcp-remote https://animeapi.ai/mcp --header "Authorization: Bearer ank_your_key".

LangChain

Use langchain-mcp-adapters with transport streamable_http, URL https://animeapi.ai/mcp and the header Authorization: Bearer ank_your_key. Or skip MCP and use the plain tool in examples/langchain_tool.py.

Try it

Ask your agent:

Draw a knight cat drinking tea in a sunflower field, landscape.

The agent calls generate_anime_image and gets back the image URL, the cost ($0.003) and the balance left.

Good to know

Every image and video is charged to the connected account's balance. The server tells agents to make one image and ask before making many, and to quote the price before long videos; it cannot enforce that, so watch your usage page.
Signing in with OAuth creates a key named MCP · <app name> in Dashboard → API keys. Revoke it there to disconnect that app.
Image URLs are on animeapi.ai/i/... and are not permanent storage. Download images you want to keep.
AnimeAPI does not generate adult content. Explicit prompts are refused and not charged.

This repository

The server itself runs at animeapi.ai; this repository holds its registry entry (server.json), install instructions and the place to report problems. Open an issue here or write to contact@animeapi.ai.

Licence

MIT

mcp

Documentation